Tale of the Tape: How two of the best pitching prospects ever match up

May 9th, 2024

could be . Stephen Strasburg could be Paul Skenes. Send Skenes back in time or bring Strasburg forward, and one easily could stand in for the other.

Both overmatched college hitters, leading NCAA Division I in strikeouts while posting the highest K rates in D-I history for pitchers who worked 100 innings, en route to going No. 1 overall in the Draft -- Strasburg in 2009 to the Nationals and Skenes last July to the Pirates. They're the best mound prospects in Draft history, with little to separate them.

Both were big and physical, with the 6-foot-6, 235-pound Skenes slightly larger than the 6-foot-4, 220-pound Strasburg. Both probably could have gone straight to the big leagues, instead dominating the Minor Leagues for a couple of months before getting called to the Majors just shy of their 22nd birthdays. Both bullied hitters with similar arsenals.

How similar were those repertoires at the same stage of their careers? Let's take a look.

Fastball

Strasburg and Skenes threw as hard as anyone in their day. Strasburg pitched in a time when radar guns didn't measure velocity as close to coming out of a pitcher's hand as they do now, and also when fewer guys reached triple digits, yet he consistently sat around 96-99 mph and topped out at 102. Skenes averaged 98 mph at Louisiana State last spring and has parked at 100 in shorter Triple-A stints this spring, also reaching 102.

Neither four-seamer stands out in terms of induced vertical break, which wasn't in vogue when Strasburg broke into pro ball, but they make up for it with overwhelming velocity and quality fastball command. Skenes produces significantly more arm-side action on his four-seamer, though Strasburg mixed in upper-90s two-seamers to achieve more sink and run.

Skenes also utilizes a difficult-to-categorize offering that he considers a sinker but others categorize as a splitter, splinker (a hybrid splitter/sinker) or changeup. It parks at 94-96 mph with the velocity and run of a two-seamer and the depth and deadened spin of a changeup.

Breaking ball

This is the most obvious difference between Strasburg and Skenes. While they both employed a wipeout breaking ball about one-fourth of the time, Strasburg relied on a curveball and Skenes leans on a slider. Strasburg sometimes got around his bender and wound up with an upper-80s slider and Skenes is working on a mid-80s curve, but both clearly went with one distinct breaker.

Strasburg's curveball was fairly ordinary in terms of depth but stood out in terms of power at 82-85 mph, as much velocity as a typical slider had 15 years ago. Likewise, Skenes' slider is more notable for operating at 85-88 mph than it is for its horizontal or vertical action. Both graded as plus-plus weapons and made it difficult for hitters to try to cheat to catch up to overwhelming fastballs.

Changeup

Both guys had quality changeups that got overshadowed by their fastballs and breaking balls, not to mention the fact they didn't need them very often. Skenes uses a Vulcan grip on an upper-80s cambio that features more fade than Strasburg's changeup, which was slightly harder with an average velocity around 90 mph and had more depth. Strasburg used his change more often than Skenes has, though it was Skenes' best offering and he went to it 20 times in a College World Series victory over Tennessee last June.

Delivery

The operative word for Strasburg's delivery was "loose," while with Skenes' it would be "powerful." Though Skenes is 2 inches taller, Strasburg got about a half-foot more extension in his delivery, enabling his pitches to get on hitters quicker. Neither threw with much effort, though some Nationals officials raised concerns early in Strasburg's career that his follow-though put stress on his shoulder.

Control/command

In the past 20 years, no pitching prospects have married power and precision better than Strasburg and Skenes. Both were the most unhittable pitchers in D-I and struck out 10 times as many hitters as they walked during their final college seasons, then continued to rack up many more whiffs than baserunners during their brief times in the Minors.

It's next to impossible to differentiate between the two. Both Skenes and Strasburg will get the nod for having the better fastball, the best breaking ball or the better delivery according to different scouts.

"I think Skenes has a better fastball and command and Strasburg has better secondary pitches," a special assistant with a National League club said. "The big separator is Skenes has a much cleaner arm action and less effort to his delivery."

"Strasburg's pure stuff was better at the same stage, but Skenes might be a little more usable because his arsenal is wider and his slider is more usable than Strasburg's curveball, even if Strasburg's curve graded out better," an American League front-office executive said. "They're pretty comparable overall by strikes."

"I never saw a college pitcher with the combination of power and command that Mark Prior had, until Strasburg," a scout with an AL team said. "But I have never seen anyone like Skenes. No one moves like that. No one that big generates that much arm speed and that much electricity. He¡¯s just an electric mover."

Whether Skenes eclipses Strasburg's big league career will depend in large part on how well he holds up. Strasburg won a World Series MVP Award, led the NL in wins and strikeouts in different years and made three All-Star teams. But he also went on the disabled list with shoulder inflammation after nine starts for Washington, blew out his elbow three starts later and only had three completely healthy seasons in the Majors.

If Skenes can avoid that parallel to Strasburg, he could wind up in Cooperstown.

seductrice.net
universo-virtual.com
buytrendz.net
thisforall.net
benchpressgains.com
qthzb.com
mindhunter9.com
dwjqp1.com
secure-signup.net
ahaayy.com
tressesindia.com
puresybian.com
krpano-chs.com
cre8workshop.com
hdkino.org
peixun021.com
qz786.com
utahperformingartscenter.org
worldqrmconference.com
shangyuwh.com
eejssdfsdfdfjsd.com
playminecraftfreeonline.com
trekvietnamtour.com
your-business-articles.com
essaywritingservice10.com
hindusamaaj.com
joggingvideo.com
wandercoups.com
wormblaster.net
tongchengchuyange0004.com
internetknowing.com
breachurch.com
peachesnginburlesque.com
dataarchitectoo.com
clientfunnelformula.com
30pps.com
cherylroll.com
ks2252.com
prowp.net
webmanicura.com
sofietsshotel.com
facetorch.com
nylawyerreview.com
apapromotions.com
shareparelli.com
goeaglepointe.com
thegreenmanpubphuket.com
karotorossian.com
publicsensor.com
taiwandefence.com
epcsur.com
southstills.com
tvtv98.com
thewellington-hotel.com
bccaipiao.com
colectoresindustrialesgs.com
shenanddcg.com
capriartfilmfestival.com
replicabreitlingsale.com
thaiamarinnewtoncorner.com
gkmcww.com
mbnkbj.com
andrewbrennandesign.com
cod54.com
luobinzhang.com
faithfirst.net
zjyc28.com
tongchengjinyeyouyue0004.com
nhuan6.com
kftz5k.com
oldgardensflowers.com
lightupthefloor.com
bahamamamas-stjohns.com
ly2818.com
905onthebay.com
fonemenu.com
notanothermovie.com
ukrainehighclassescort.com
meincmagazine.com
av-5858.com
yallerdawg.com
donkeythemovie.com
corporatehospitalitygroup.com
boboyy88.com
miteinander-lernen.com
dannayconsulting.com
officialtomsshoesoutletstore.com
forsale-amoxil-amoxicillin.net
generictadalafil-canada.net
guitarlessonseastlondon.com
lesliesrestaurants.com
mattyno9.com
nri-homeloans.com
rtgvisas-qatar.com
salbutamolventolinonline.net
sportsinjuries.info
wedsna.com
rgkntk.com
bkkmarketplace.com
zxqcwx.com
breakupprogram.com
boxcardc.com
unblockyoutubeindonesia.com
fabulousbookmark.com
beat-the.com
guatemala-sailfishing-vacations-charters.com
magie-marketing.com
kingstonliteracy.com
guitaraffinity.com
eurelookinggoodapparel.com
howtolosecheekfat.net
marioncma.org
oliviadavismusic.com
shantelcampbellrealestate.com
shopleborn13.com
topindiafree.com
v-visitors.net
djjky.com
053hh.com
originbluei.com
baucishotel.com
33kkn.com
intrinsiqresearch.com
mariaescort-kiev.com
mymaguk.com
sponsored4u.com
crimsonclass.com
bataillenavale.com
searchtile.com
ze-stribrnych-struh.com
zenithalhype.com
modalpkv.com
bouisset-lafforgue.com
useupload.com
37r.net
autoankauf-muenster.com
bantinbongda.net
bilgius.com
brabustermagazine.com
indigrow.org
miicrosofts.net
mysmiletravel.com
selinasims.com
spellcubesapp.com
usa-faction.com
hypoallergenicdogsnames.com
dailyupdatez.com
foodphotographyreviews.com
cricutcom-setup.com
chprowebdesign.com
katyrealty-kanepa.com
tasramar.com
bilgipinari.org
four-am.com
indiarepublicday.com
inquick-enbooks.com
iracmpi.com
kakaschoenen.com
lsm99flash.com
nana1255.com
ngen-niagara.com
technwzs.com
virtualonlinecasino1345.com
wallpapertop.net
casino-natali.com
iprofit-internet.com
denochemexicana.com
eventhalfkg.com
medcon-taiwan.com
life-himawari.com
myriamshomes.com
nightmarevue.com
healthandfitnesslives.com
androidnews-jp.com
allstarsru.com
bestofthebuckeyestate.com
bestofthefirststate.com
bestwireless7.com
britsmile.com
declarationintermittent.com
findhereall.com
jingyou888.com
lsm99deal.com
lsm99galaxy.com
moozatech.com
nuagh.com
patliyo.com
philomenamagikz.net
rckouba.net
saturnunipessoallda.com
tallahasseefrolics.com
thematurehardcore.net
totalenvironment-inthatquietearth.com
velislavakaymakanova.com
vermontenergetic.com
kakakpintar.com
begorgeouslady.com
1800birks4u.com
2wheelstogo.com
6strip4you.com
bigdata-world.net
emailandco.net
gacapal.com
jharpost.com
krishnaastro.com
lsm99credit.com
mascalzonicampani.com
sitemapxml.org
thecityslums.net
topagh.com
flairnetwebdesign.com
rajasthancarservices.com
bangkaeair.com
beneventocoupon.com
noternet.org
oqtive.com
smilebrightrx.com
decollage-etiquette.com
1millionbestdownloads.com
7658.info
bidbass.com
devlopworldtech.com
digitalmarketingrajkot.com
fluginfo.net
naqlafshk.com
passion-decouverte.com
playsirius.com
spacceleratorintl.com
stikyballs.com
top10way.com
yokidsyogurt.com
zszyhl.com
16firthcrescent.com
abogadolaboralistamd.com
apk2wap.com
aromacremeria.com
banparacard.com
bosmanraws.com
businessproviderblog.com
caltonosa.com
calvaryrevivalchurch.org
chastenedsoulwithabrokenheart.com
cheminotsgardcevennes.com
cooksspot.com
cqxzpt.com
deesywig.com
deltacartoonmaps.com
despixelsetdeshommes.com
duocoracaobrasileiro.com
fareshopbd.com
goodpainspills.com
hemendekor.com
kobisitecdn.com
makaigoods.com
mgs1454.com
piccadillyresidences.com
radiolaondafresca.com
rubendorf.com
searchengineimprov.com
sellmyhrvahome.com
shugahouseessentials.com
sonihullquad.com
subtractkilos.com
valeriekelmansky.com
vipasdigitalmarketing.com
voolivrerj.com
zeelonggroup.com
1015southrockhill.com
10x10b.com
111-online-casinos.com
191cb.com
3665arpentunitd.com
aitesonics.com
bag-shokunin.com
brightotech.com
communication-digitale-services.com
covoakland.org
dariaprimapack.com
freefortniteaccountss.com
gatebizglobal.com
global1entertainmentnews.com
greatytene.com
hiroshiwakita.com
iktodaypk.com
jahatsakong.com
meadowbrookgolfgroup.com
newsbharati.net
platinumstudiosdesign.com
slotxogamesplay.com
strikestaruk.com
trucosdefortnite.com
ufabetrune.com
weddedtowhitmore.com
12940brycecanyonunitb.com
1311dietrichoaks.com
2monarchtraceunit303.com
601legendhill.com
850elaine.com
adieusolasomade.com
andora-ke.com
bestslotxogames.com
cannagomcallen.com
endlesslyhot.com
iestpjva.com
ouqprint.com
pwmaplefest.com
qtylmr.com
rb88betting.com
buscadogues.com
1007macfm.com
born-wild.com
growthinvests.com
promocode-casino.com
proyectogalgoargentina.com
wbthompson-art.com
whitemountainwheels.com
7thavehvl.com
developmethis.com
funkydogbowties.com
travelodgegrandjunction.com
gao-town.com
globalmarketsuite.com
blogshippo.com
hdbka.com
proboards67.com
outletonline-michaelkors.com
kalkis-research.com
thuthuatit.net
buckcash.com
hollistercanada.com
docterror.com
asadart.com
vmayke.org
erwincomputers.com
dirimart.org
okkii.com
loteriasdecehegin.com
mountanalog.com
healingtaobritain.com
ttxmonitor.com
nwordpress.com
11bolabonanza.com